I’m wishing you a very warm and delightful Thanksgiving if you are celebrating. Let there be nourishing and indulgent food, heart-warming and engaging company, and gratitude for the amazing you in whatever space you find yourself.
Here in Cork some friends and I have organized a Friendsgiving potluck to extend a bit of gratitude and good eating to an otherwise typical Thursday. I’ve found the experience quite thought-provoking, not least because my Irish friends are unfamiliar with the concept of a potluck.
Every social gathering, every team, every family is made up of individuals who arrive to the group offering something.
Everything's a Potluck
One of our professors spent some time in San Francisco where she was first introduced to potlucks. Weeks ago she digressed during a lecture and the whole class spent nearly 30 minutes discussing potlucks.
Many of my classmates were astonished, or had a hard time wrapping their heads around the idea of everyone bringing dishes to a gathering. How did you determine who brought what? What was the purpose of such a thing?
Culturally, this might imply that the host doesn’t have the means to provide for everyone. In contrast, it might respect the idea that everyone is a co-creator of the space.
As I think about my upcoming potluck and reflect on potlucks in general, I can’t help but think that many of our experiences are in fact potlucks.
Every social gathering, every team, every family is made up of individuals who arrive to the group offering something. Each conversation is a potluck of ideas…every organization a potluck of skills and goals.
Like food, we may not like every “dish” offered in a space. We may disagree with the combination of ingredients that someone presents, or be distrustful of a recipe. We may also find ourselves attracted to other dishes – our go-to flavors for familiar feasting.
Perhaps this is a cliche Thanksgiving topic, but how lovely to see potlucks all around us…Meals co-created and experiences collectively fostered.
As I round up my November gratitude month, I want to offer you a challenge. Similar to the idea of counting your blessings, I encourage you to take a few minutes now to count your potlucks.
What shared gatherings are you grateful for in your life right now?
These could be work spaces, social spaces, creative spaces, virtual spaces…you name it! See how many potlucks you can identify that are in some way meaningful to you.
If you’re feeling a little extra strain or struggle this time of year, or if you simply want to work to enhance your gratitude, I also invite you to work through the Gratitude in Action workbook. It will guide you through seven simple gratitude practices to invest time in gratitude. Experiment and see what works well for you.
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